A web of double-faced pressure-sensitive stickers

ABSTRACT

Pressure-sensitive elements, preferably carried in web form suitable for machine handling, are left bare of the pressuresensitive coating along one edge to provide a convenient portion used as a handle in some forms, as a hanger in other forms. In one form the pressure-sensitive elements are coated on both sides except for a very narrow edge, being easily lifted at the edge and then seized and pulled from the web together with a guard piece. In other forms, where the handle portion serves primarily as a hanger, the element is made of sturdy plastic. For some purposes the plastic and its adhesive preferably have sufficient transparency so that the hanger may be secured to a package without concealing any printed matter thereon. In some hanger forms, the element is slit so that if the part by which something is hung starts to peel therefrom, it will peel past portions which are separated from it so that they do not peel with it, these then resisting further peeling.

Elite tates McMaster ate A WEB OF DOUBLE-FACED PRESSURE-SENSITIVESTICKERS Samuel B. McMaster, Deerfield, Ill.

Do-lt Corporation, Highland Park, 111.

Inventor:

Assignee:

Filed: Dec. 26, 1973 Appl. No.: 428,623

Related U.S. Application Data Division of Ser. No. 104,420, Jan. 6,1971, abandoned.

U.S. Cl 161/39, 161/146, 161/167, 161/406, 206/820 Int. Cl 1332b 3/10,B33b 7/06, C09j 7/02 Field of Search 161/167, 406, 146, 39; 248/205, 205A, 467

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1 1 Mar. 4, 1975 PrimaryE.\'aminer--Philip Dier Attorney, Agent, or FirmDarbo, Robertson &Vandenburgh [57] ABSTRACT Pressure-sensitive elements, preflerablycarried in web form suitable for machine handling, are left bare of thepressure-sensitive coating along one edge to provide a convenientportion used as a handle in some forms, as a hanger in other forms. Inone form the pressure-sensitive elements are coated on both sides exceptfor a very narrow edge, being easily lifted at the edge and then seizedand pulled from the web together with a guard piece. In other forms,where the handle portion serves primarily as a hanger, the ele' ment ismade of sturdy plastic. For some purposes the plastic and its adhesivepreferably have sufficient transparency so that the hanger may besecured to a package without concealing any printed matter thereon. Insome hanger forms, the element is slit so that if the part by whichsomething is hung starts to peel therefrom, it will peel past portionswhich are separated from it so that they do not peel with it, these thenresisting further peeling.

1 Claim, 10 Drawing Figures A WEB OF DOUBLE-FACED PRESSURE-SENSITIVESTICKERS This is a division of application Ser. No. 104,420 filed Jan.6, 1971 now abandoned.

INTRODUCTION One of the problems to which the present invention isdirected is the provision of hanger-extensions for small articles suchas merchandising packages, wall plaques or the like so that they can behung, either on display rods or hooks in retail stores, or bypurchasers. Heretofore merchandising packages have been made suitablefor hanging by the use of cards or the like forming the body of thepackage, or stapled to the package and having a punched hanging hole.Both forms virtually required that the package as initially prepared beintended for such hanging. With the preferred form of the presentinvention, universal hangers can be provided which are extremely low incost and are provided with pressure-sensitive adhesive so that they maybe quickly and easily applied to any small item. Preferably thesehangers are in web form, so that they can be applied in rapid successionby a machine. Also the hangers are preferably made of a sturdy plasticof sufficient transparency so that they will not obscure any printedmatter on the package.

Another problem to which the present invention is addressed is thetendency of pressure-sensitive hangers to peel from the surface to whichthey are secured, if the article hung is moderately heavy so that thereis a constant and substantial pull by gravity. The ability of a hangerto resist this peeling is substantially increased by slitting the hangerso that, perhaps after initial peeling, the peeling force will beresisted by adhered portions extending backwards from the direction ofpeelmg. l 1

A third problem to which the present invention relates is the convenientuse of pressure-sensitive stickers. Here the problem is solved byproviding the stickers in web form but with the adhesive spaced slightlyfrom one edge of the web, the bare edge being easily raised for peeling.If the web is adhesive-coated on both faces, it and the top liner orguard strip are preferably perforated at intervals to provide separatestickers.-

With this construction it is very easy with one finger to start both thetop guard strip and the stickerjointly curling away from the base strip,then grasp them jointly on their bare edge and pull then off jointly,and press them jointly onto the piece to which they are to be firstattached. Then it is easy to start the top guard strip and pull it fromthe sticker, exposing the stickers second sticky .surface for attachmentof the second article to the first. If it is later desired to separatethe two articles and to remove the sticker, the bare edge is a great aidin starting the removal of the sticker once it has been exposed.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent fromthe following description and from the drawings.

DESIGNATION OF THE FIGURES FIG. 1 is a face view of a portion of a webof press-out hangers for packages utilizing this invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic view of a machine for applying the packagehangers of FIG. 1 to packages.

FIG. 2a is a horizontal sectional view through the ram of FIG. 2.

FIG. 3 is a view of a hanger of FIG. 1 applied to a package, with theprinting on the package visible through the hanger. r

FIG. 4 is a view of a modified form of hanger which may be provided inthe web of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are face views of two forms of peelresistant hangersespecially suitable for hanging objects heavy enough to cause peeling,it they were hung by ordinary pressure-sensitive hangers.

FIG. 7 is a view illustrating how the hangers of FIGS. 5 and 6 resistpeeling.

FIG. 7a is a face view of the wall piece shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 8 is a face view of a web of double-faced stickers, the adhesivebeing omitted along one edge of the web to facilitate separation of theparts.

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic view of a machine for dispensing the stickersof FIG. 8 in situations where large numbers thereof are likely to' beused.

FIG. 10 is a transverse sectional view through the spreader position ofFIG. 9.

INTENT CLAUSE Although the foregoing disclosure offered for publicdissemination is detailed to ensure adequacy and so aid understanding,this is not intended to prejudice that purpose of a patent which is tocover each new invcntive concept therein, no matter how others may laterdisguise it by variations in form or additions or further improvements.The following claims are intended as the chief aid toward this purpose,as it is these that meet the requirement of pointing out the parts,improvments, or combinations in which the inventive concepts are found.

WEB OF PACKAGE HANGERS FIG. 1 shows a web 11 comprising a strip of heavytough plastic 12 coated all along a selected zone 13 withpressure-sensitive adhesive. A guard strip 14 of release paper coversthe adhesive 13.

The plastic strip 12 is made up mostly of a series of die cut hangers16, each having an aperture 17 therethrough by which the hanger can beslipped onto a hook or rod, for example when displayed in a retail storefor customer selection. Many plastics may be used for strip 14,including polypropylene, polystyrene, Mylarttransparent polyethyleneterephthalate resin) and vinyl. The present commercial choice is highdensity polyethylene, about 20 mils thickness.

The web 11 of FIG. I is especially suitable for a machinediagrammatically illustrated in FIG. 2 for applying the hangers 16 topackages. The web 11 may be supplied in the form of a roll 21 from whichthe web 11 may be drawn. The machine includes rolls 22 of which twoserve to draw the web 11, and the other helps to peel the guard strip 14from the web. The web then passes under the applying ram 23 which hasbeen illustrated as operated by solenoid 24. When the solenoid 24 isenergized, its ram punches from the web 11 one of the hangers 16 havingthereon bare adhesive facing the package and presses it on a packageresting on a table 26 below the ram. The remainder of the web passesbetween driven pull-out rollers 27 which eject the web skeleton into ascrap container. The web should be fed intermittently, with accuratepositioning of its hangers under the ram. The intermittent drive hasbeen illustrated by a claw 2 8 reciprocated by a solenoid 29, the clawbeing biased to entering successive apertures 17 and feeding the web 11much as a motion picture film is'fed through a beam of light, exceptthat the feed is only one stroke at a time, on demand.

It should be borne in mind that the machine of FIG.

2 is only shown diagrammatically. An alternative feed.

is by rollers. with registration obtained by stopping the drive whenmicroswitch lever 31 falls into a notch in web 11. Various refinementscould be provided. For example, the claw 28 or feed rollers can operateat a higher speed if pre-feed rolls22 pull the web from the roll 21 intoa loop. There may be another loop, not shown, on the other side of ram23 if found to be needed. Either the claw 28 or projections on one ofthe pre-feed rolls 22 can eject slugs from the hole 17 if the slugs cutfrom them are not removed in the course of die cutting. The solenoid 24can be actuated by a microswitch of which arm 31 is actuated by thepackage to be worked upon when it reaches its home position, andsolenoid 29 can be automatically actuated when solenoid 24 has returnedto its normal position. Pressure plate 33 (engaging only the bareportion of web 11) applies enough friction to hold the web in positionexcept when moved by claw 28.

It will be observed that the bare ends of the hangers.

may reasonably be referred to as handles, since they may be engaged byclaw 28 during the operation of the machine of FIG. 2 and by hand forhanging the packcially useful when there is a choice of colors, forexample. Web 11 can be made with this style of hanger.

FIG. 5 shows a hanger 41 which represents still additionalmodifications. Although this hanger can be used for heavier packages, itis intended more specially for hanging decorative objects such as printsor light pictures. Its bare o'r handle portion 42 is provided with twoslots 43 which permit the object to be hung at two different heights onthe same hook or nail. Also each slot is elongate horizontally and isprovided with a serrated upper edge so that the object can be shiftedlaterally to its properly balanced position, and will stay there, if thesupporting member is narrow enough to fit between the teeth .of theserration.

t It will be observed in FIG; 5 that the hanger 41 is slit along a line44 of inverted U shape. The handle portion 42 is thus part of a flapwhich may be sprung from the plane of the remainder. This greatlyreduces the tendency of pressure-adhesive hangers to come loose by agradual peeling under the influence of gravity, when supporting anobject of appreciable weight. A variation ages afterwards. To be surethat the ram accommodates the claw 28 but nevertheless breaks thesehandles clean from the plastic strip, its pressing end may be dividedwith one portion pressing substantially the entire adhesive area of eachhanger and the other portion pressure nearthe remote outline of thehandle, the claw 28 working in the space between them. The upper guideplate 32 can be slotted throughout the length where the clawreciprocates.

The guard strip 14 is preferably wider than the strip 13 of adhesive tofacilitate starting its removal. This is especially desirable if thehangers may be applied by hand. If they are not to be applied by handthe strip 14 may be of the same width as the adhesive for reasons ofeconomy and convenience of manufacture. The

economy lies not merely in the amount of material used, but in the factthat the method of manufacture deemed best at present is to have theadhesive and guard stripmade in a roll of sufficient axial length to cutmany composite strips from one roll. At present it might be moreexpensive and require preplanning and more time to have this rollprepared with separated strips of adhesive, so that wider guard stripscould result from slitting in the middle of an adhesive strip and in themiddle of the space between them. Another way to provide wider guardstrips is to remove the strip by which the adhesive is applied andreplace it with one a little wider than the adhesive strip. Thealternative of removing the original guard strip and replacing it with awider one also represents extra expense, as well as a modified machinefor doing so.

FIG. 3 shows a typical finished package 34 with one of the hangers16secured to it, with the printing on the package visible through theadhesive end portion of the hanger 16.

FIG. 4 shows a hanger 36 which is of a modified form having a slot 37instead of a mere aperture. This enables a customer to remove onepackage from the rear of others without first removing the others. Thisis espeof this which is perhaps even more sure to resist peeling isshown in FIG. 6, in which the hanger 41 has slits 47 which formseparated fingers 48 at the extreme edges of the hanger.

The way the hangers 41 and 41' resist peeling is seen in FIG. 7. Here awall hook 49 is seen hanging the hanger 41 (or 41') and the object 51 towhich it is secured. The weight of the object 51 tends to cause thehanger 41 to peel away from the object 51 slowly but progressively.However, when it reaches the condition shown in FIG. 7 further peelingis resisted by the fact that the tongue 46 or fingers 48 have not takenpart in this progressive peeling and further peeling is resisted bothabove and below the point to which the peeling has progressed. In thecase of the form shown in FIG. 6, when the incipient peeling progressesto the bottoms of the slit 47, this point is virtually surrounded byunpeeled areas. That is, these unpeeled areas are above. below, and onboth sides.

Either type of slitting 44 or 47 can be used with the hangers of FIGS; 3and 4, if need for more reliable adhesion is encountered. However, thedimensions there do not give room for very long peel-resisting fingers,and there has been no determination of how much short fingers will help.7

Although the hook 49 in FIG. 7 could be a metal hook or a nail, it hasbeen shown as the hook portion of a plastic pressure-sensitive wallhook, the preferred face view of which is seen in FIG. 7a. Withpressure-sensitive wall hooks, the pressure-sensitive material iscommonly on the back surface of a layer of sponge material52 whichextends to all edges of the body 53 of which the hook 49 is a part.Heretofore such hook bodies have been formed by molding with the hookportion molded as an outstanding member. It is preferred, however, thatthe hook portion be a die cut member as seen in FIG. 7a, the die cuttingbeing a mere slit along most of the length of the hook but including twoperforations 54 one on each side ofthe base of the hook. This isadvantageous when a picture or other object is being hung by a wire orstring, because a tortuous path back through one perforation andforwardly through the other tends to hold the wire or string againstunintended slippage so that once the object is properly balanced ittends to stay that way. When such a wire or string is used, the hook maybe pressed into the plane of the body where (by the nature of diecutting) there is a snap-in action or press fit, so that the hook devicecan safely support a greater weight than it would otherwise.

DOUBLE FACED STICKERS FIG. 8 shows another form of pressure-sensitiveelement, again with the elements carried in web form and provided withbare handle portions. In this instance the elements are double facedstickers 56 which are quite useful for many of the uses for which doublefaced tape has heretofore been used. Where separate small pieces aredesired, the FIG. 8 form is much handier than double faced tape. Typicaluses include hanging very ligh pieces, such as sheets of paper on a wallor mounting similar pieces in a book or on sheets of paper.

Preferably the stickers 56 are nearly separated by perforations betweenthem in a continuous strip which is sandwiched between a carrying strip57 and a perforated guard strip 58. It is quite convenient inmanufacture to run the composite strip through a machine which does theperforating through both layers to be perforated and also prints theguard strip to indicate where its bare edge is.

The user finds it quite easy to raise or curl the bare edge 59 with hisfinger. The most convenient method of use is usually to raise jointlythe edges of the guard strip and the sticker. Once raised, the two arejointly grasped between finger and thumb and pulled free, both tearingat the perforations. .Now they can jointly be pressed against one of thetwo pieces to be fastened together. If desired, the sticker can befirmly secured to this first piece at this stage by pressing firmlyalong its adhesive area, the pressure being exerted through the guardstrip. Now it is easy for the user, with his finger along the bare edge,to curl the guard strip away from the sticker so that the guard stripmay be grasped separately and pulled from the sticker. This exposes acompletely clean adhesive area of the sticker for bonding to the otherof the two pieces which are to be secured together.

These bare-edged stickers can easily be made by a strip-coating methodsimilar to that described with respect to FIG. 1. A wide web iszone-coated on opposite sides of the same spaced zones. After beingsandwiched between additional webs which ultimately form the carryingstrip 57 and guard stripp 58 these joint webs are slit. They may eitherbe rolled up first and later slit, or they may be slit immediately. Ineither event, the slitting is midway of the adhesive zones and midway ofthe bare zones between the adhesive zones. The adhesive zones are fairlyclose together, specifically twice as far apart as the desired narrowbare edge 59.

The web-like arrangement of these double-faced stickers makes them veryconvenient, either for packaging and ultimate use entirely by hand asdescribed, or for use with the aid of a dispenser as shown in FIGS. 9and 10. Here the web of stickers is drawn from a supply roll 61.Depending on the wishes of the operator, the guard strip 58 (FIG. 8) maybe drawn off by a set of rollers 62. In any event, the web is drawn pasta small plow 63 which raises the bare edge 59 of the sticker 56. Ofcourse there should be a suitable guide loop 66. The user can now graspthe edge 59, and the guard strip with it if the guard strip has not beenremoved, without the preliminary step of curling the bare edge up withhis finger. The backing strip 57 (FIG. 8) may pass through a guide loop66 and be used to pull the web through this.

dispenser by hand. This drives rollers 62, if they are provided. Withoutthese rollers, this dispenser can be the packaging container with theplow 63 and guide loop 66 added.

ACHIEVEMENT From the foregoing it is seen that various pressuresensitivedevices or useful articles have been provided in which the articles arein web form for convenience, and have bare portions serving handle-likeor support functions. Exceptional convenience of usage is thus achieved,with additional advantages somewhat varied in the different forms. Inall forms, the articles are extremely low in cost. This, and theconvenience of the preferred web forms, make the invention very suitablefor large quantity usage, which machine application of the device wheredesired.

I claim:

1. A web of double-faced pressure-sensitive stickers having thepressure-sensitive coatings arranged on opposite faces along alongitudinally extending zone extending less than the full width of theweb, leaving each sticker with an edge portion bare on both faces bywhich it may be manipulated, said adhesive portions each being coveredby a carrier strip guarding one face, and a guard strip guarding theother face and extending over the bare edge portion of each stickerwhereby the edges of the sticker and guard strip may be jointly curledand grasped for joint removal from the carrier strip, the double-facedweb and said guard strip being jointly readily separable alongsuccessive predetermined transverse lines while the carrier strip isrelatively tear-resistant as compared to the double faced web and guardstrip, whereby successive separate stickers, each with its guard pieceportion ofthe guard strip. may be jointly pulled loose from the carrierstrip by grasping the uncoated zone, then jointly applied to one of twothings to be joined; the guard piece then being removed by grasping itsfree edge.

1. A web of double-faced pressure-sensitive stickers having thepressure-sensitive coatings arranged on opposite faces along alongitudinally extending zone extending less than the full width of theweb, leaving each sticker with an edge portion bare on both faces bywhich it may be manipulated, said adhesive portions each being coveredby a carrier strip guarding one face, and a guard strip guarding theother face and extending over the bare edge portion of each stickerwhereby the edges of the sticker and guard strip may be jointly curledand grasped for joint removal from the carrier strip, the double-facedweb and said guard strip being jointly readily separable alongsuccessive predetermined transverse lines while the carrier strip isrelatively tearresistant as compared to the double faced web and guardstrip, whereby successive separate stickers, each with its guard pieceportion of the guard strip, may be jointly pulled loose from the carrierstrip by grasping the uncoated zone, then jointly applied to one of twothings to be joined; the guard piece then being removed by grasping itsfree edge.